Amendments to the Churches and Congregations Act, which have now been passed by the Riigikogu, mean that the Kuremäe Monastery and the newly renamed Estonian Christian Orthodox Church will sever their ties of subordination with the Moscow Patriarchate, reports ETV news show "Aktuaalne kaamera."

According to Bishop Daniel of the Estonian Christian Orthodox Church, the next steps will only be taken once the decision of President Alar Karis has been announced.

"In our view, this restricts our freedom of religion and also the international norms that Estonia, as a signatory to such norms, must comply with, and we hope that the president will perhaps decide not to promulgate the law in this form," Bishop Daniel said.

According to the church, the current draft is not proportionate because if the Moscow Patriarch says something Estonia deems to be aggressive, it is the local organization with canonical ties that will be punished, not the offender themselves.

However, Estonian Minister of the Interior Igor Taro (Eesti 200), says the draft is intended to protect Estonia's faithful from falling under the direct control of a hostile state, a terrorist regime or an organization that supports aggression.

"This is such a universal principle, it applies to all associations and organizations, of whatever denomination. It is nothing to do with religion. It is purely a question of governance. With some other religions, the question would not have arisen at all, whether this norm is reasonable or not," Taro said.

Taro does not see the move as a restriction on religious freedom, as the state is not intending to deal with religion, tradition or church dogmatics, but only with the governance of legal entities.

However, in a letter to the president, Abbess Filareta of the Pühtitsa Convent (also known as Kuremäe Monastery), said religious freedom had been dealt a serious blow and asked for the law to not be promulgated.

According to Hent-Raul Kalmo, legal adviser to President Alar Karis, the president is seriously considering whether the restrictions outlined in the bill are justified and in line with the Constitution.

"The president has stressed on several occasions that if a step is taken to increase Estonia's security, it must be certain, and often it has to be clarified by conducting studies, to ascertain whether this step will in fact increase Estonia's security. This in order that this security argument does not become a pretext, or so that we do not make the mistake of adopting a step that may at first sight appear to increase Estonia's security, but in fact does not. So. the question is not always even that we ought to choose between religious freedom or security, but rather whether we are actually increasing our security in this way in any case, Kalmo said.

Speaking on Vikeraadio on Thursday, President Karis said the law had arrived at Kadriorg that morning. "I have 14 days to analyses and consider what this decision will be. But also with this law, the only choice to make is whether it is in line with the Constitution, whether there is a violation of the Constitution or not. And I will make my decision on that basis," Karis said.

According to Minister of the Interior Igor Taro, who has met with representative of the Church, the ministry is open to further negotiations and cooperation. Bishop Daniel says there may now be an opportunity to resolve the issue together, but the Church does not intend to overstep certain boundaries.

"If there are questions about the statutes, we will try to resolve them, but the decision to go to court for compulsory dissolution is still a ministerial one," Bishop Daniel said.

The church also plans to approach international organizations to seek support.

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